tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-377424952014-10-03T16:54:17.240+09:00Choko-tabi with Choko-ChebiA journal of my Chocolately (Choko) travels (tabi) with my trusty ferret (ChokkChebi) in Japan and Korea <br>yogaferretnoreply@blogger.comBlogger112125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37742495.post-63704746239881575402011-09-12T05:02:00.001+09:002011-09-12T05:04:48.498+09:00Zucchini/Pumpkin Flower PancakesTaking a break from the usual and enjoying the last vestiges of summer in these latitude I thought I would share an old family recipe.
Old as in "Old Country" old.
Zucchini/Pumpkin Flower Pancakes
In general, zucchini flowers are more delicate. We prefer the hardier pumpkin
flowers but this recipe applies to both with the only adjustment being
that you should use some more flowers if yogaferretnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37742495.post-73327882681795310312011-08-27T07:04:00.001+09:002011-08-27T07:06:40.261+09:00curiouser and curiouserI find it funny that I post something to my NON-profit Japan blog here and some major FOR-profit news agency prints a similar article a little later.
Reuters talks about the rapid changeover of prime ministers
Reuters takes about the aging population, amoung other things.
Just saying is all ...
Cheers! (^_-)-☆
Thanks again for stopping into my little corner of the 'net, and Happy yogaferretnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37742495.post-68761981522832777912011-08-24T04:47:00.002+09:002011-08-24T05:11:43.049+09:00The Disappearing Prime Minister and other magic tricks of censorshipThis article on the sad state-of-affairs in education and thought in the mainstream American culture reminded me that I really need to write about Japan's (in)famous Disappearing Prime Minister, as America is on the fast-track to this same type of information censorship.
I had often made the joke that Japan has been going through a Prime Minister a year for the past 8 years. Although the truth yogaferretnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37742495.post-80766983049596181072011-08-19T10:09:00.004+09:002011-08-24T22:31:31.990+09:00The Fallacy of FairnessShirley Jackson's THE LOTTERY.
Brilliant, rather unsettling piece of work. If you don't know it, go out and find it at your local library.
If you don't feel like dealing with the traffic (or the people), you can download it for free.
I used to joke that the Japanese make all their final breakthrough decisions with rock-paper-scissors. If sumo is the national sport, rock-paper-scissors is the yogaferretnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37742495.post-27422699328715377872011-08-14T07:23:00.006+09:002011-08-14T08:16:34.530+09:00My new job as a Highly Successful Fortune-TellerI really try to not watch the Japanese news anymore.
It's not because of the smothering censorship though. Being able to speak and read Japanese fluently I could find the information on what is really happening if I looked around for it. The fact is I already saw it coming.
What I predicted back in April, low and behold, is happening now:
* mass numbers of people suffering from heat exhaustionyogaferretnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37742495.post-22417200885993415512011-08-02T02:56:00.002+09:002011-08-30T03:05:56.549+09:00End of an Era...of InformationSo sad to see the extreme and increasing level of censorship transpiring in Japan since 3/11.
Although the censorship is not as bad as the Chinese government that goes so far as to eradicate the sharing of "subversive" information or calls to gather by private individuals, the quick action to censor on the part of the media we saw in the Disappearing Prime Minister Incident was truly a portent yogaferretnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37742495.post-73483501357759436382011-07-26T07:33:00.196+09:002011-08-30T03:04:46.048+09:00Post WW-2-Nuclear JapanIn sharing some of my recent experiences of the 3/11 events and in particular the ongoing aftermath, I heard an excellent summary, a prediction of sorts from my audience.
They are heading into post-WW2 conditions...especially when winter comes around... They had nothing... (paraphrased)
This sounds extreme to someone on the outside of the events, particularly given the highly censored news yogaferretnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37742495.post-36560159029224399682011-07-24T04:07:00.007+09:002011-08-24T22:31:31.997+09:00Know Before U Go: the earthquakes are FAR from overBefore the M9 in Northern Japan on 3/11 the research institutes in Japan were already predicting within the next 30 years, there will be an M9 in SOUTHERN Japan.
That has not happened YET.
And while I was still trapped in Japan, I was living in Southern Japan. Living in Southern Japan afforded me the privilege of not only seeing first hand how poor the Japanese government responded to a yogaferretnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37742495.post-40175276858259624742011-07-23T02:43:00.004+09:002011-07-23T02:53:34.589+09:00sounding familiar?I so love the Old Time Radio stories.
The GOLDEN ERA of Radio was truly a Golden Era not just of radio as a medium, but of creativity and thoughtful speculation. A time when horror was creepy and haunting, not bloody and violent. When science fiction was more than just special FX and CGI.
By chance recently I found myself listening to an old familiar one I had not heard in five or more years.yogaferretnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37742495.post-27977887392821833802011-07-20T07:20:00.002+09:002011-08-30T03:03:19.726+09:00Radioactive Reporting..... of a different sortWell, I can post all about the news censorship and information suppression in Japan. Boy, could I post about the things I know and saw.
And STILL see and know even know that me and my fuzz are safely out of Japan. One just has to know where to look because you won't hear any of it on the official TV stations. The one time I did find something, not only did that video disappear when I went yogaferretnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37742495.post-81902846726733243742011-07-10T06:58:00.001+09:002011-07-10T07:28:29.444+09:00a brief note to plagiarisersThank you.
No, really.
THANK YOU.
If you're making any hard $$ off of my works or ideas, I salute you because I sure as he11 am not.
Not that I started writing with the intent to make any money off of it. That just happened to be a nice little bonus.
A nice little bonus that google was soon to extinguish with its ever changing, ever burgeoning Ad(NON)Sense rules and addendums.
HOWEVER, the yogaferretnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37742495.post-5831397741649860112011-06-18T18:28:00.007+09:002011-07-03T22:25:39.264+09:00被害届け： a visit from Jack Sprat and his wifeLife is filled with first's.First crush.First kiss.First baby...This was a first I could do without.I made my first call to the Japanese Police this past Monday! (The 13th, incidentally.)There were obvious signs that someone had been in my apartment while I was away at work. In other words, my very first actual case of breaking and entering. Not a very competent job fortunately as nothing was yogaferretnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37742495.post-8190309462967632992011-06-09T20:19:00.005+09:002011-07-03T22:20:23.043+09:00Assignment, Set and VOLLEY!I have decided that instead of being merely pumped for information by the a$$h01e$ at work, I am going to jump in the court and play with them.I could go into the details (and will later), but suffice it to say that at this current place, beyond a few early... mistakes? shall we call them? no one has actually ever spoken TO me. Mostly, they have talked AT me, always with the intention of pumpingyogaferretnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37742495.post-68578422846983195532011-06-08T21:03:00.010+09:002011-07-03T22:25:39.267+09:00Eternal 1984I live in the Village of the DAMNED.Or maybe time has never passed beyond the eighties?Like 1984?An eternal Orwellian 1984.No, really, very creepy here.As in Big BROTHER is Watching creepy.As a non-Asian in Asia you live in the perpetual fish bowl. You get everything ranging from the outright GAWKING to most common yet only mildly offensive "Oh, look at the white person." "Oh, a foreigner." to yogaferretnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37742495.post-91074595533485104242011-05-25T21:53:00.004+09:002011-07-03T22:20:23.053+09:00B1tch H1tler, againAnother conversationUnwanted but overheard by the misfortune of being in the same room.And did I mention she basically runs the Buddhist preschool/kindergarten (or in this case, military academy for short people)?This was message delivered on behalf of nonpresent employee "A" by another of the staff, employee "B". Employee A had previously had a miscarriage. Traditionally there are specific yogaferretnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37742495.post-12120170612341321872011-05-17T18:47:00.004+09:002011-07-03T22:20:23.056+09:00coming to a theater near YOU!Well, not coming to a theater, but definitely coming to an ESL Blacklist in the near future.And it's just the tip of the ice berg of what this place is like.I was privy to a conversation tonight through the auspices of having my desk literally IN the VP's office.Another teacher walked in to give notice of vacation plans during summer vacation. The conversation quickly degenerated and came to a yogaferretnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37742495.post-50751739015954484622011-05-05T08:27:00.009+09:002011-08-24T22:31:32.001+09:00false(?) rumors flyingI encourage all to send a request to this Minister to ask if he is seriously saying "It is the fault of the private (animal welfare) groups that pets can not be brought out of the no-go zone."Because that is the rumor being spread far and wide by this local vet.Is this true? Can someone in the government really be trying to place the blame on Humane welfare groups?Maybe and Maybe not.After all, yogaferretnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37742495.post-49261774420969031162011-04-16T15:52:00.002+09:002011-08-24T22:31:32.003+09:00Barks, Hisses, and TweetsFinally got to the point where there is some real collective action being taken as there is now more information being collected and dessimated from stable sources.Where are they? Online, naturally.And just as naturally, in Japanese.To that end we dookfully request that if you want to help and have a twitter account to please please please retweet this information.Often.As often as you can.Pleaseyogaferretnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37742495.post-34909847674931238122011-04-13T18:20:00.005+09:002011-08-24T22:31:32.006+09:00Sometimes Big Brother IS on our side?Thank you CNN.As much as I have little regard for the current degenerated state of American journalism, that is not to deny that they still have their moments.In a sea of frivolous to downright useless information out there, my posts and similar posts by other organizations are surely being ignored, but the good news is the media isn't ignoring us. Or at least CNN isn't.What have we been engagedyogaferretnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37742495.post-1085119917702424302011-04-04T18:47:00.002+09:002011-04-04T18:49:31.295+09:00Donations for Japan's VoicelessGot a very nice list of donation sites worked up so reposting!(You repost and pass the word too. ;) )THE ANIMAL RESCUE SITE has direct and credible online donation abilities.The Humane Society International (HSI) is now prepared to accept donations for the welfare of animals affected by the recent disaster in Japan. Secure donations can be placed to their International Disaster Fund. (Paypal, yogaferretnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37742495.post-40999686780112203442011-04-03T08:15:00.010+09:002011-04-03T09:15:52.956+09:00Hits, Misses, and in betweensBack to something less heavy yet infinitely more caloric.Tirol is a traditional, much beloved chocolate in Japan. Often found in the convinence stores, it's not known so much for quality, but for it's compact size, quaint designs, and variety of unimaginable flavors. (Yes, it even puts Kit Kat to shame in this respect.)Allow me to introduce a few of the recent flavors.We'll start with the 'hits'yogaferretnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37742495.post-87781448417209409312011-04-01T18:56:00.004+09:002011-08-24T22:31:32.008+09:00radioactive Reporting (2)Just so no one feels bad, here's a curious(?) followup to this previous article.
This article about the evac zoning was published in the Japanese equivalent to the Wall Street Journal. I posted it back on March 30 on my other major site, (Don't worry no one reads that either.) but as it has been brought up again, I will repost it here.
I know most can't read this, but it said at the time that yogaferretnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37742495.post-1393240272480667652011-03-31T18:42:00.011+09:002011-08-24T22:31:32.011+09:00radioactive ReportingI am rather tired of hearing about the latest American sensationalist news.Radiation over 100,000 times the normal limit?!?!When did minuscule become synomynous with 100,000?Or NINE even?Being very very distant from the site, I find the rampant fear-mongering and exaggeration to be far more frightening than the actual radiation itself. Did CNN or FOX bother to mention how much radiation you get yogaferretnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37742495.post-58515553925071563082011-03-29T20:02:00.003+09:002011-08-24T22:31:32.018+09:00Social SurivialTonight's CLOSE UP JAPAN was about the use and effect of twitter (and facebook) after the earthquake-tsunami disaster.reporting back later....Cheers! (^_-)-☆Thanks again for stopping into my little corner of the 'net, and Happy Browsing!!All translations copyrighted and owned by myself. All copyrights of their respective owners. No part of this web site may be produced, reproduced, stored in a yogaferretnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37742495.post-54535449325367708952011-03-25T17:55:00.004+09:002011-03-25T18:17:13.765+09:00Flowering FridayForget TGIF, it's HANAKIN!花金Or "Flower Friday" if you prefer, the most blessed day of the week in any culture. Hanakin is also the day, for me in particular, to partake in 鯨飲馬食。Working at a Japanese preschool and kindergarten, you barely have time to have a decent meal yourself at any point during the day much less at lunch time. Morning is time to quickly wolf something down (usually while in yogaferretnoreply@blogger.com0